CROWD COFFEE

Some entrepreneurs skeptical of state's new tool for raising capital | The Seattle TimesBut the new mechanism will allow any Washington citizen to invest $2,000, or 5 percent, of his or her income in a Washington-based company seeking capital through crowdfunding. People who make more than $100,000 a year could give up to 10 percent of their net worth or annual income.crowdfunding marketing

Small businesses are allowed to raise up to $1 million per year through the equity-crowdfunding offering. Libes said he doesn’t know yet how much he will seek.

FMA to grant first equity crowdfunding licences | Stuff.co.nzFinancial Markets Authority (FMA) spokesman Andrew Park said the financial regulator was on track to grant its first licences to equity crowdfunding platforms within the next fortnight.A law change in April allowed entrepreneurs to sell shares to the public and borrow money from them with little red tape through licensed crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending platforms.However, the FMA has yet to grant any licences, resulting in a lag in businesses being able to take advantage of the new rules.crowdfunding advertising

Crowdfunding changing real estate financing for operators and investors | Real Estate WeeklyAssuming real estate crowdfunding follows the path of ‘crowd’, or peer-to-peer, consumer lending — where companies such as Lending Club and Prosper have facilitated over $4 billion in debt financing, and hedge funds are putting money to work on these platforms — then crowdfunding will transform our industry as well. Let’s examine why investors see crowdfunding as a unique way to participate in real estate; how developers, operators and financiers can get involved; and what the future may bring.indiegogo marketing

Bob Marley's daughter raising funds for Jamaican football team | ExpressNo Caribbean team has ever made the cut, but designer Cedella Marley is confident her efforts will give the athletes the edge.She and her family are offering up incentives for donors who pledge cash on the IndieGogo.com website.The national team hopes to raise £29,400 to pay for equipment and travel expenses.kickstarter marketing

Lyft is coming to New York City | Technical.lyRidesharing service Lyft appears to be coming to New York City. Sharing economy advocacy organization, Peers, had an event at the Dumbo Startup Lab last night, and attendees confirmed that Lyft plans to launch with a special emphasis on Brooklyn.

Uber Chopper: For When a Mere Car Isn't Enough for Your Sharing Economy Transportation Needs | BustleFirst Uber offered cars. Then they offered weddings. And now? They’re offering helicopters. A collaboration between the sharing economy transportation venture and New York startup Blade, Uber Chopper will take to the skies on Thursday, making it possible for you to arrive at your summer vacation destination with panache. Or something.kickstarter project

Travel law: More on the sharing economy – the Uber App and AIRbnb | eTurboNewsIn two of our recent articles [Travel Law: Controlling and taxing the travel sharing economy, ETN (May 29, 2014) (discussing airbnb’s apartment-sharing service) and Travel Law: Rental car companies behaving badly, ETN April 23, 2014 (discussing Zipcar’s car rental concept)] we have touched upon some of the creative and disruptive new Internet based technologies through which short-term accommodations and local transportation are marketed. In this article we will continue our discussion of the sharing economy focusing on Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber), the ride-sharing smartphone app.CrowdFunding advertizing

NASA crowdsources its MindShift software to stimulate inventors and innovators | TechRepublicOne such NASA creation is MindShift, a video game-esque technology that provides biofeedback scores to the user on measurements of attention and focus. Now, NASA wants to crowdsource this technology to entrepreneurs and innovators to see what they can do with MindShift.NASA recently announced that it was partnering with Edison Nation, an innovator community that helps bring intellectual property (IP) to market, to reach out to the public to see what applications they can come up with for certain NASA technologies, starting with MindShift.CrowdFunding marketing

Why Robotics and 'Open Innovation' Go Hand in Hand | Huffington PostOne of the recurring themes so far on the Technology Strategy Board's Robotics Mission to California has been 'open innovation'.Isn't that the much hackneyed model developed by Henry Chesbrough back in 2003, and of course beloved of MBA graduates? Well yes, but the theories behind the system - when put into practice - are proving to work out here in California's tech corridor.During this trip, the young UK robotics companies have continually seen the effectiveness of open innovation and collaboration when applied to the commercialization of products in nascent markets.Kickstarter Marketing